Video Game Violence Research Paper

This article is a very useful source. Is useful because it answers the question, “Do violent video games cause an increase in aggression.” The question is answered thoroughly by the author because they cited recent studies, examples, and peer reviewed or scholarly sources that all concluded that violent video games cause an increase in aggression. The author is objective because they countered their argument by stating that

From a young age some of us begin to play video games. Violent video games can share the bad and the good. Yet, their problems outweigh the benefits such as being influenced, having nightmares , and becoming addicting.

That may be because videogames are such an important part of socializing for that age, Kutner and Olson say, that these boys are, by definition, “abnormal” (Zipp). However, Kutner and Olson are careful to point out that their study does not prove causality: It may be that more aggressive children are drawn to more violent videogames and not that the games themselves are to blame. Researchers just don’t know yet (Zipp). Kutner and Olson also say that playing the games with your child is an excellent idea, for many reasons. For one, 12-year-olds love being able to trounce their parents at something. For another, parent and child will be able to have meaningful conversation while playing whether about videogames or not. (Children at that age find it much easier to talk to parents if they aren’t facing them.) And if a parent finds something that concerns them in a game, a child may listen more thoughtfully than if the parent just issues a blanket refusal to allow future playing, Olson says. ” But for those parents who simply won’t let their children have video games at home, Olson says “total denial doesn’t work,” there’s a good chance the child will just find somewhere else to play them.” Here again Kutner points out there is no proof of causality (Zipp). One of the major factors keeping violence in video games is the fact that it would be considered unconstitutional. States however continuously try to make laws that restrict

Hundreds of studies have been done to determine whether violent video games will really make juveniles more violent. Randomized experiments were used in several studies to examine the short-term effect of violent video games (Anderson and Berkowitz et al. 90). In these studies, children were randomly assigned to play violent or nonviolent video games and then were observed when given an opportunity to be aggressive. The result was that children who played violent video games usually behaved aggressively.

How long does the aggression last? A study was conducted by Dr. Craig A. Anderson, Ph.D., of Iowa State University, and his colleagues. They researched how children and teen's video game patterns related to their behavior three to six months later. It included a mixed background of individuals ranging from ages 9 to 18 totaling 1,414 subjects. In one group the subjects listed their 3 favorite games and

Have violent video games been found to lead to an increase in aggressive cognition? Aggressive cognition is any aggressive thought. By their nature, violent video games require the gamer to think about the violence and aggression of the game. Anderson et al. found that exposure to violent video games was significantly related to higher levels of aggressive cognition (2010). Anderson also reported that playing violent video games poses a risk for short-term and long-term increases in aggressive thoughts. Anderson’s study has significant implications because the first step in any act of violence is the thought of what one is going to do. However, just because one thinks about violence does not mean that one will act upon it. People have numerous

to commit crimes in their adult life, however, this is not limited to males only, as females were about four times more likely to experience this early in life (Finkelhor, 2012.)

Graphic and violent video game companies should strictly rate their video games that are being sold. When teenagers ages 13-18 play these violent video games that include killing, blood and terrorism, they have less physical activity. The more teenagers that play graphic and violent video games have more chances to be affected by the violence and mature content. Every time these games are played, the gamers will react more aggressively and violently toward students at school, siblings and parents. When violent and graphic video games are strictly rated and monitored the positive outcomes are less mature content, more physical activity and prevents teens from video game related violence.

One of today’s most debated topics is whether violent video games cause bad behavior. This topic has been researched for almost 30 years and there are still major opinion differences. Many psychologists say violent video games do cause bad behavior, and claim that games such as Manhunt, Grand Theft Auto, and Modern Warfare, desensitize people to violence, making it a norm in society. Others disagree, claiming that these games, although they can be very violent, can help people develop critical thinking skills. (Nonviolent video games are preferred for this though). The truth is, violent video games do both; studies indicated that some games increase aggressive thought, feelings and behaviors in both the long and short term. But, studies

In this age of technology, it's very safe to say that a large majority of the world's population has played at least one video game. This can vary from playing games on console, like Xbox-One, Playstation 4, and for the older generation, the NES to playing mobile games like Tetris. There are many consoles that span from the creation of video games. This has opened opportunities to make several kind of games. These can vary from side-scrollers like Super Mario Bros. on the NES, to Role-playing games (RPG) like Final Fantasy IX on the Playstation 1. While this has caused some great games to surface, it has also allowed intense violence to be let into games. Parents and anti-gaming communities state that this is why kids can become violent. This is false, because violent games can be avoided to prevent this issue, and the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) has even made various precautions to make sure parents know what they're purchasing. Comprehensible symbols, detailed lists, and age restrictions prevents children from "becoming violent".

The correlation between video games and aggression is a topic of much discussion and research. If one sees violence repeatedly in a game or their environment will it have an effect on their worldview,

The graphics in games now make the game almost look as if it were real life. That has brought the video game industry a lot more players and part of those new gamers are young children. The issue is when a child is presented with a violent video game that has really good graphics the child has a better understanding of what is going on in that game. Because children can relate what is going in the video game to the real world, that leads children to believe that the actions being done in that video game are accepted in society. If the children believe that its right from them to do violent actions that they learned from the game there attitude starts becoming more aggressive. Anne Harding says “children who watch violence in the media can internalize the message that the world is a hostile place...”.

Playing violent games can and does stir hostile urges and mildly aggressive behavior in the short term. Adolescents spend so much time on their video games, putting thoughts of shooting, cursing, and extreme acts of violence in their head; they spend an extreme amount of time on video games. Children who are so attached to the video games do

Anderson C. & Bushman B. 2001. Effects of violent video games on aggressive behavior, aggressive cognition, aggressive affect, physiological arousal and prosocial behavior: A meta-analysis. Psychology and Science 12, 353–359

My family members do not play video games much and have not committed any violent crimes. None of them have told me that they love violence with a passion or make vulgar responses when they play video games. Russell Elmore wrote a dissertation and inquired about the advancement in technology to allow for more realistic scenery in video games (Elmore “THE EFFECT OF VIOLENT VIDEO GAME EXPOSURE ON EMOTION MODULATION OF STARTLE AND AGGRESSION”). Many children in my family look at video games as a resource to take up time out of their day. Even though they play violent video games they are welcoming and comical people when I speak to them. When they are mentally ill or struggling with others, we won't discuss violent video games. All of my relatives use a technology resource as help for an upcoming task or to connect with others. When I do bring up video games, we will not carry on a conversation long. Word Count- 1293